Know Everything About The Rules And Objective of Roller Derby

Roller Derby is a roller-skating sport that is played by two teams with full contact. Roller Derby is played in more than 1,250 amateur leagues around the world. The first-ever Roller Derby match was played in Chicago, the US, in 1953. The sport became quite popular after the 1940s, with the first Roller Derby League being played in the year 2000 in Austin, Texas.

 If You Want to Know about roller derby rules, objectives, equipment, and players, then keep reading this article. 

What is Roller Derby?

Roller Derby is a popular sport in the United States of America. This team sport is also played in some other countries in the world. It is a full-contact sport packed with action, making it exciting for both the spectators and competitors. 

This team sport has many governing bodies. The largest of them is the “Women’s Flat Track Derby Association,” responsible for more than 400 leagues. This fact reflects that women primarily play this game.

However, more men are taking up this game. The Men’s Roller Derby Association is meant to look after the men team of this game. Various countries have formed their own governing body for this sport. 

The objective of the Game

The main aim of the game is quite simple. Both teams try to score more points than the opposition team. The points are rewarded when an offensive player of any one team (known as jammer) laps a member of the opposite team. As Roller Derby is a full-contact sport opposing team’s defensive player (known as blockers) has full permission to use physical force. Blockers try to stop the opposition jammer from passing through the path and steering the path clear for their team’s jammer.

Roller Derby Players & Equipment

In Roller Derby, each team has a maximum of 14 players; however, teams are allowed to field only five players at a given time. Four players are known as the blockers, and one of them is the jammer.

 The jammer on both teams is the only player who is allowed to score. The jammers have a start on their helmet to distinguish them from other players. One of the four blockers is known as Pivot. The pivot is the captain of the blockers and makes defensive calls on the play. 

All the roller derby players skate on their quad roller skates instead of the inline skates. The roller derby quad skates have a small wheelbase, which minimizes the chances of tripping on other player’s skates. These are more stable and easy to control compared to inline skates. These features of roller derby skates make things easier for players during their combative play in the match.

Other roller derby equipment is knee pads, mouth guards, elbow pads, a helmet, and a wrist guard. Players can also wear gender-specific gear to protect them, like groin guards for men and protective bras for women.

Scoring In Roller Derby

In Roller Derby, scoring rules are pretty simple. The scores are made during the periods of Jams. Jams occur in each half of the game and last for about two minutes. However, the Jammer is allowed to call off the jams early. 

Points are scored when the jammer from one team laps the members of the opposition team. To prevent this, the opposition team uses various tactics like body contact, blocking, and trying to stop it. Every time the jammer laps a player from the opposing team, a run is scored. 

Read More:- Everything You Need To Know About Figure Skating

Winning the Game

The team with the maximum score at the end of the match is the winner of the game. In this sport a tie is not allowed in the match. To choose the winning team, an overtime jam can be announced. 

There will be no lead jammer in an overtime jam, and the team which scores the highest run will be the winner of the game. The successive jams are announced until there is a final winner of the match.

Roller Derby Rules

• In Roller Derby, the teams consist of 14 players; however, only five are allowed to play in the given time. The team players are divided as follows:

 1 Jammer- Jammer is that player of the team who is allowed to score points.

4 Blockers- Blockers are the players in defensive positions. These players have to block the jammer of the opposition team from lapping them and scoring points. 

The team captain is known as the Pivot and is also one of the blockers. He is in charge of calling shots.

• The matches are 60 minutes long. Each match is divided into two halves of 30 minutes each.
• The game is played on a Roller Derby track, which is oval. At the beginning of the game, the blockers of the Opposing roller derby team skates around the track.
• When the pack passes through the starting line and the team’s last player is 30 feet away, a whistle blows, and both jammers start skating.
• Both the jammers have to skate fast and fight their way through the opposite team’s blockers. When this is done, the Jammers score a point.
• Each Jammer can score more points by racing around the track and lapping the Opposition team members. Every time a jammer passes one member of the team, they score a point.
• Blockers have permission to use physical force to stop the opposing team’s Jammer from passing and scoring a run.
• Every jam is scheduled for two minutes.

• A penalty will be issued in the following case:

1. Blocking over the shoulder
2. Tripping
3. Blocking with an arm under the elbows
4. Charging from the rear position
5. Blocking a player when jammer is out of the bounds

• When the match ends, the team with the highest scores will be teh winner. 
• In case the match is a tie, an overtime jam is announced. The jams will keep recurring until a winning team is declared.